Notre Dame Football: Why Independence is important
Notre Dame’s independence is a hotly debated topic in college football, but there has always been a good reason for that independence.
Among college football fans, the most hotly debated topic regarding Notre Dame’s program is their independence. Is it right that they don’t play in a conference championship game? Does it make it harder or easier for them to reach postseason heights? Does it equal an easier or harder schedule?
The truth is that Notre Dame holds onto independence for more than just some misguided love of tradition.
Historically, college football has been a regional affair. That’s why the conference has names like the Southeastern Conference and the Pacific Athletic Conference. It makes sense. There was a time when travel was incredibly difficult and expensive, so playing close to home was the best option.
One thing that came with this regionalism was recruiting pipelines, and rivals. However, Notre Dame was never a regional school. Michigan and Fielding Yost blackballed them from joining the Big 10. This meant that the Fighting Irish looked elsewhere for its recruiting base and scheduling.
Notre Dame looked outside its immediate region and became a national brand as they did so. Representing the nation’s Catholic population, the Irish became incredibly popular in cities like New York.
This was how Notre Dame recruited, by going into cities across the country, having a larger media presence, and essentially taking their pick of recruits.
Obviously, this is more fragile today. To say the Irish have the pick of recruits nowadays would be a major overstatement. They do well but do not pick and choose who comes to South Bend well.
Still, Notre Dame must be able to recruit nationally. Indiana is not an ideal state for college football recruitment, and South Bend is a less attractive place to go and play than a warmer climate. The best way to do this is still to have as strong a presence nationally as possible.
Being Independent allows Notre Dame to play games coast to coast. In 2020 alone they will play games in Los Angeles, Charlotte, Atlanta, and Pittsburgh. These are all recruiting hot spots that Notre Dame gets to travel to, and recruit as well as play.
A schedule like this would simply not be possible if Notre Dame was tied to a conference. If they were in the ACC, there’s no way a game at Wake Forest would be moved to Charlotte from on-campus. That type of schedule doesn’t happen unless a game is out of the conference.
Furthermore, being tied down to a conference wouldn’t allow the Irish to play its traditional rivalries with consistency. Navy, Stanford, USC, Michigan, and Michigan State are all outside of the fabric of the ACC. That’s before you add a potential MAC fluff game.
We also know that Notre Dame’s independence isn’t a hindrance to any National Championship aspirations. By operating as an Independent the Irish made the BCS Championship Game and the College Football Playoff in the past decade.
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Yes, the Irish can’t afford any blemishes to make it, but they can. The day that they are unable to win a National Championship on the basis of its independence is the day that independence is no longer viable. Until that time comes, it is important that Notre Dame remains Independent.